Anatomy and AppearanceAnatomy and Appearance- Pandas thick black and white fur helps them stay cool in forests. A Panda has a white tail and black circles under their eyes. Pandas have a thick white coat with black markings and have a black band around their shoulder and their black legs. Both female and male Giant Panda is about 2-3 feet tall. When a female is an adult Giant Panda she is about 150 to 280 pounds. The Giant Panda weighs up to 300 pounds. The male Giant Pandas weighs more than a female Panda.It is rare for a female Giant Panda to be 200 pounds.
Behavior The Giant Panda mostly spends its life roaming and feeding in the bamboo forests of the ¨Qinling Mountains and in the hilly Sichuan¨ Province¨.Each adult has a defined territory and a female is not tolerant of other females in her range. . Pandas rarely ever attack people, but if people enter their territory they will attack the people as a self defense warning.
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DietA Panda’s daily diet is mostly eating leaves, stems and bamboo species. Bamboo contains very little nutritional value so Pandas must eat 12- 38kg every day. So they can meet their every day energy needs. But Giant Pandas do branch out about 1% of their diet with other plants and also even meat. Pandas are almost entirely vegetarian, Pandas will sometimes hunt for small rodents. Although they have to depend almost entirely on bamboo this on bamboo leaves them to any loose of their habitat currently the major threat to their survival.
Life Cycle-The average life of wild Giant Pandas is 15-20 years old. The captive Pandas can live up to 30 years. Currently, the record age for a captive Panda is 38 years old. Most Pandas leave their mothers when she becomes pregnant again around about 18 months. A Panda's average life span in the wild is 14-20 years. But they can live up to 30 years. When giant Pandas are born they are tiny, blind, and pink, with some few hairs. When a newborn Panda is about the size of a stick of butter they are very tiny but can grow to up to 330 pounds as an adult. These Giant Pandas are amazing tree climbers.
Reproduction and YoungGiant Pandas don’t lay eggs because usually only reptiles and birds lay eggs. A Panda is a mammal and they don’t lay eggs but some other mammals do. But, Giant Pandas do have babies. When a newborn panda is born is is about 90-130 pounds. Pandas are independent on their mothers for the first few months of their lives at 8 to 9 months.
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